Rowena's POV. 10.
Unlikely Alliances.
I didn’t want to meet Rachel. But I needed to.
The invitation had come in the form of a folded note tucked inside my locker. No name. Just a location— the west tower classroom, the one no one used anymore. The handwriting was sharp and rushed—too elegant for any of the girls I shared classes with.
I hesitated outside the door for a full minute. The hallway was silent. Everyone else was in class. I should have been too. But I opened the door instead.
She was already waiting, seated on the teacher’s desk like she owned it. Legs crossed. Nails painted black. She didn’t look up when I walked in.
“Took you long enough,” she said, brushing a strand of dark red hair behind her ear.
I closed the door. “I almost didn’t come.”
Rachel finally met my eye
